Wherefore art thou Juliet?
by Seriious Pumpkiin
Summary: Kizana returns to school, preceding the two dead girls as Tarou Yamada's new companion. She sees potential in him that she refuses to let go to waste.


Kizana clicked her tongue, staring disdainfully at the blonde girl in front of her. Sure, she had the added height, but Kizana had everything else. Plus skirts that short just screamed try hard.

"Is there something you want?" she drawled, not really caring about the answer but willing to amuse the girl for however long this took. She could always use extra examples for playing such a... character.

"What I want?!" The girl sounded outraged. _Annoying_. "Your first day back and you're already causing shit? For someone so attention starved you're a real bitch."

Kizana's years of acting were the only thing that stopped her from flinching away. Instead she stood strong, like a few words weren't enough to crumble her whole defence. "That's all? Don't waste my time and I won't waste yours."

And she walked off. A quick dismissal, not bothering to keep up a pointless argument.

 _A quick escape, not willing to let someone knock her down like that._

The thought was ignored quicker than it came, almost like it hadn't at all. Kokona Haruka. Everyone knew she looked up to the drama club, more specifically Kizana herself, and those who pretended she didn't were oblivious liars. So when Kizana had returned late from her drama camp and seen the girl with such a similar haircut there was no room for coincidences Kizana obviously commented on it. If Haruka was too weak to handle that than she wasn't capable to be in the drama club.

 _Speaking of weak..._

Tarou Yamada. From Kizana's vague recollections of the boy he'd sat by himself last year - even with the random and loud presence of the late Osana Najimi - so that wasn't exactly what stuck out to her. More the broken set of his shoulders. He looked like a boy who'd tried to hold the world on his shoulders even as it fell apart in his hands. The mysterious deaths of Najimi and Amai Odayaka weren't exactly secret. As soon as Odayaka's tortured body had been found rumours spread faster than it had probably taken to kill her.

There was an ache in Kizana's chest thinking about the two but she hadn't spoken to either for more than a few sentences so she didn't stay hung up for too long. Not like Yamada. Someone like him would be ignored immediately but instead she approached him, feeling the sharp stare of the blonde girl following.

"Tarou Yamada, correct? Friend of the two girls?" Yamada flinched, looking up at her with haunted eyes. So vulnerable. If he wasn't careful someone would take advantage of him. "Good. Mind if I sit down?"

He looked ready to refuse but didn't. Such an open face. That was a problem. She sat down carefully, not particularly happy about sitting on the edge of a fountain but willing to anyway. He still hadn't spoken so she didn't wait for him to.

"I apologise for my insensitivity but I was simply drawn to you. There's potential in you that only a special few possess. Tell me, have you ever considered joining the drama club?" Kizana asked, her voice clipped and professional as if they were in a business meeting.

"Join a club?" he echoed, voice shaking on the last word. She glanced over him with blank interest. A sore subject?

"Yes, although I understand if it's not for you. I only believe that your involvement would be a great asset," she continued. She disguised her small shuffle away by turning to face him more. Usually with boys she would attempt to get closer to them but one look at Yamada showed that was not what he wanted.

He took a while in responding. Kizana didn't tend to wait so long on one person but she hadn't lied about his potential. Plus, personal trauma helped convey a character's trauma in a play...

"I'll think about it," he murmured. There was no sign of a lie on his face so she stood up promptly, satisfied with her progress.

"Same place, same time. I'll see you tomorrow," she promised, spinning around and walking from the courtyard, marking off the first step in her mind.

* * *

Kizana smiled warmly, kneeling in front of Yamada - immediately wanting to get up but forcing herself to stick with it - with a friendly greeting. "I see you haven't moved much."

Her tone stayed relaxed, a stark difference form yesterday's, obvious by the split second confusion in Yamada's eyes. It had taken a while and some extra coaxing but she'd gathered information on the other two girls, locking off the tooth-achingly sweet and tough love personalities as ones not to be used in front of Yamada.

"Have you thought about my question?" she asked.

He nodded shortly. "I have but-" he visibly hesitated and Kizana reinforced her nice girl routine in preparation, "- is it true you harassed Haruka about her hair?"

Ah. The blonde girl. Kizana bit her lip, looking away enough for Yamada to notice but still able to see his face clearly. "I did... I- I'm sorry, it's just after missing two weeks of school I was scared I was getting replaced, and I-"

Her voice broke off and she lowered her head slightly. Yamada's face quickly switched from apprehension to pity. "No, it's okay. Sorry for assuming."

"It's okay." She looked up, letting out a teary-eyed chuckle. "Wow, that really was pathetic, huh?"

He shook his head quickly. "No-!"

The sentence died out when he moved to touch her shoulder. The pity melted off, replaced with a more hollow stare. She reached up to hold the floating hand, rubbing small circles with her thumb. "Hey, it's okay. I'm here. Do you want to talk about it."

The hollow eyes turned to her face and they both remained in silence until he'd returned to normal. "I wouldn't want to bother you."

Her only reply was a shake of her head and he began talking, leaving Kizana to offer support through their hands and regretting every moment she stayed kneeling. He told her more than she thought necessary but you could never play a character without understanding the character and the same applied to real people. She learnt about Najimi: her favourite foods, and the playful rivalry between her and Hanako Yamada - his younger sister - and the way she grow defensive every single time she was embarrassed, even over the smallest things. She learnt about how they'd been friends long enough that Yamada couldn't remember a time without Najimi, and the friendship bracelets they made out of everything that could form a loop when they were kids. She learnt about Odayaka, who he'd only really known for a week but had been so unconditionally friendly, offering support towards Najimi and his parents, offering food almost every time they met up, and the way she treated him like family until he'd felt like that's what she really was.

And then he talked about the deaths, and his grip grew tight and cold, and he stumbled over his words like he never wanted to speak them but couldn't get them out fast enough. How he'd watched Najimi die, stuck watching in horror and unable to do anything about it while she desperately choked on her food. How Midori had screamed, cracking her phone when she dropped it, and the Basu sisters had almost collapsed, stumbling over themselves to get help. How he had stood there and let it happen instead of trying to help, uselessly, letting his best friend die. He spoke about the nightmares that kept him awake through half the night and the times where he couldn't even stay strong to comfort his little sister while she cried.

He talked about finding about Odayaka through his parents, telling him offhandedly about a girl who's body had been found in the cooking club, cut and burned like the killer had been preparing her as a meal. About how he pried for more information, fearing the worst, and only getting his fears confirmed. He talked about those nightmares too, how they were both less and more graphic from not seeing the body. He didn't have to continually relive the moment, a cruel reminder of his failure, but instead his imagination took control, creating more and more graphic nightmares every night, even sometimes in the day.

And then Kizana remained holding his hand until a wandering teacher found them, long after the class bell had gone, and Yamada was sent off to the counsellor, ushered away in tears while Kizana was sent to class with only an obligatory warning not to be late next time.

* * *

Yamada had moved to a bench in the courtyard, still in a place that Kizana could find him but not so in the middle. She joined him quickly, glad for a proper seat this time.

"Hello Yamada," she greeted.

There was a small silence, a brief moment where neither of them mentioned what had happened the previous day but it was obviously on their minds. Kizana - of course - was the first to talk about it.

"I'm not short of my own sad stories," she began, keeping her voice neutral, "so I empathise, though for different situations."

Yamada said nothing, but stared curiously. She flashed over the stories he had told her and slowly kept talking.

"You mentioned your parents being very focused on your schoolwork. While I can't relate to everything else I do relate to that. My parents have always been so pushy towards me pursuing acting, I've done it since I was young and have never stopped. Whenever I wasn't acting I was studying and that was more for keeping my grades up so that I could continue to act in a school. It hasn't always been easy, but one thing that always helped - funnily enough - was my acting. If I never showed weakness no one would ever realise I was feeling weak and then maybe I would start believing it," she said quietly, keeping an eye on his reaction.

It was funny, that while she talked about using acting to hide her weaknesses, she was acting to hide her lies. Sure, what she'd said wasn't all lies, but some was, and it definitely wasn't the full story. Yamada of course, looked completely believing, like there wasn't a part of him that doubted her.

"I don't say this to gain your pity of course," Kizana said with a wry smile. "I was hoping I would be able to help you do the same. It's not a permanent solution obviously but I'd like to help you the best I can."

And then if he agreed she was one step closer to him joining the drama club. So as he nodded and hesitantly agreed that he'd like that she expertly kept the satisfaction of her face, like he wasn't just following the script she'd laid out for him.

"Great, we can start whenever you're ready," Kizana said, smiling brightly. "Do you want to stay here or move to the drama club? I understand if you'd rather be somewhere more private to do this."

* * *

Kizana's breath shuddered, tears pooling in her eyes, while the larger boy yelled furious words. Both of them were doing the best performance in a while, unfortunately let down by the skittish maid still on the scene when she should've scampered off stage right when the argument had began. The newest member of the drama club was irritatingly new at acting but more members was usually a good thing so Kizana had tried to leave time aside to train her.

Of course, her past two and a half days had been taken up by Tarou, who she knew was dutifully sitting in the middle of the front row. She'd obediently stopped her eyes from wandering, locking on his own, although with more difficultly than usual. She recognised the flutter in her chest of course, and she wasn't one to leave her feelings ignored once realising them, but Kizana knew the myth of the cherry tree and even she was willing to see it through. Straight after the performance Tarou would head towards there like the note she'd sent told him to, and she would follow.

There was doubt though. Usually she was so self assured but something in Tarou's behaviour made her less confident. She'd approached him again with the drama club offer and while he looked ready to accept there was hesitance and a muted request to wait until the next week. She didn't understand why, if he wanted to join anyway, would he would put it off, but apparently she was a better teacher than she thought because his face betrayed nothing.

The larger boy finished his rant, storming off stage with a roar at the skittish maid who squeaked loudly and followed quickly. In the audience Kizana heard a few laughs but everyone else was mostly silent, excluding the usual whispers scattered throughout. Kizana wobbled downstage, slumping to her knees when she made it. Tarou was directly in front of her, watching with a fond expression.

It almost made her break character but she didn't.

A loud groan cut off her first line and she improvised, shaking her head tearfully. "I can only hope that I won't be blamed for whatever tha-"

A louder groan. Snaps of rope that sounded like whips. Screams. Tarou's horrified expression.

Total nothingness when the pressure hit, ending in a second as her body burst under the stage's roof.

* * *

 **Well.**

 **I wrote in a rival's POV! I started this not sure how it would work but I'm relatively satisfied. Of course, there are _those paragraphs_. That was pretty wordy. Whoops. Also, when a character was first introduced I would use their full name first. I like to think Kizana keeps track of a lot of students, filing their names away so when she needs to remember someone for whatever purpose she can just pull out their name from her mind.**

 **I ended up reflecting myself a little on Kizana. Not all of it obviously, just a few details, mostly to do with her personality. Until the game comes out and proves everything I written wrong I have free reign on these rivals and obviously, as a drama student myself, I'm gonna connect a little with her. I was a little conflicted because other than Tarou (who she did end up manipulating, whoops) I never showed her being kind to other characters and y'know, her short term goal is to be popular and generally that means being nice. But it also says her personality's distasteful so I'm just gonna say that her plan for popularity is to be real good at acting.**

 **I was gonna use a play I've done for the last scene but instead I just made something up. Really all I needed was an excuse to get her downstage so pfff, doesn't matter what play I use.**

 **Thanks for reading!**


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